InBetween
by Raiast
Summary: Collection of Sareth drabbles, not experienced with these guys, so probably slightly OOC. Rating may change as one-shots are added!


_**Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah, we all know that I own nothing to do with the Labyrinth, though I thank the rightful owners a thousand times over for letting me play with their creations.**_

**A New Development**

"We're _so_ sorry to have to leave you on your birthday," Irene gushed as she swept her pure white coat over her shoulders elegantly. "But there was just no way we were getting out of this cocktail party."

"We'll make it up to you, Sarah," her father promised as he slipped on his black dress shoes by the door.

Sarah Williams, recently aged eighteen, stood near the bottom of the stairs, arms folded over the banister and supporting her weight. "Don't worry about it," she assured them. "We did the birthday dinner thing...the presents...if you want we can go to a movie this weekend or something. Go. Have fun," she shooed them with her hands, returned Irene's grateful smile as they fled out the door.

She stood unmoving from the steps, staring at the door that had just shut behind them. Eighteen certainly felt like any other day. She pushed those thoughts from her head with a sigh, turning and trudging up the stairs. Halting mid-step as she reached her room, she turned and walked down the hallway to the room situated at its end. This room had once been hers, was given to Toby a year ago when Sarah had moved into her parents bedroom, them moving to the downstairs guest room.

Upon poking her head in, she found Toby already fast asleep. Her step-brother certainly was easier to tend to now that he could run off his energy until he fell into a slumber only a child is capable of achieving. She closed his door as quietly as she could and padded on light feet back to her own room.

Sarah wandered in and shut the door behind her mechanically, was trying to decide between reading or drawing to pass the time when she caught an odd glint of light on her vanity from the corner of her eye. She blinked once. Twice. That wasn't...was it? Ever so slowly, as if even her own body didn't want to know for sure, Sarah twisted back around to face the old vanity.

Ice flooded her veins, and she couldn't tell whether her heart had stopped and her breathing had accelerated, or if her heart had begun hammering wildly and her lungs and ceased all function. She was distinctly aware of the vibration in her skull, and realized with a slight start that she had shuddered so hard her teeth had rattled.

There on her table, nestled right between her hairbrush and her makeup case as if it wholly belonged there, was a flawless crystal orb. Sarah's green eyes, widened in alarm and disbelief, were glued to the foreign (yet oh, so familiar) object. She took one step forward. Two. Attempted to swallow and found her mouth and throat entirely too dry to complete the task. As she neared the vanity, she noticed the folded piece of white paper that sat beneath the sphere.

"Whaa..." the birthday girl half-breathed, half-hissed; her eyes narrowed slightly. "Where did you come from?" she questioned the crystal with a frown. When its only response was to stare at her innocently, Sarah huffed in anger. She reached out, whether to hurl the damnable object in the trash or out the window, she didn't know which, and stopped herself with inches to spare, pulling away as if the thing had just turned into a fireball. _Knowing him I wouldn't be surprised..._

"What do you do?" she demanded hotly, now glaring at the offending orb with an intensity that was wasted on the inanimate object. Her eyes darted back and forth between the orb and the note that rested beneath it. Carefully, Sarah picked up her hairbrush and nudged the sphere away as if it were something from the Bog itself. Or at least, she _tried_ to nudge it away. See, when Sarah poked at the paperweight with the brush, the two collided with a soft _clink_, but the orb remained unmoving. She tried again, with more force this time, only to achieve the same result.

With a slight frown, Sarah reached for the corner of the paper and tugged gently, then harder. It couldn't be slid from under the weight, as if the crystal weighed pounds instead of ounces. She tried once more, gave up when she realized her efforts would only tear the note.

"Hm," Sarah contemplated this turn of events, her pointer finger and thumb wrapped about her chin thoughtfully. After a moment she began chewing on her bottom lip-a habit that she hadn't fallen into for almost two years. All the while she eyed the duo of unwelcome objects.

It was likely that the only way for her to retrieve the note was to actually pick up and move the crystal orb that sat atop it. It also stood to reason that something quite undesirable would happen if she let that thing in contact with her body. She would probably be killed, she wagered, if she touched his crystal. Or poofed into the Bog. Or turned into a goblin. So despite the irritating itch of curiosity that began gnawing at her insides, Sarah gave a huff and a roll of her eyes, and turned around to flop down onto her bed.

"Screw that," she muttered bitterly, reclining her with hands behind her head. She glared up at the ceiling in silence for a few minutes, then lifted her head slightly to glare at the crystal. She dropped her head with a frustrated sigh.

How cruel of him, to contact her after three years with such trickery. Certainly he knew that her curiosity would refused to be quelled until she had discovered what that note said. It was all a lure, just to get her to touch that stupid orb. Her eyes flickered in the direction of her vanity. What _would_ happen if she touched it? And _what_ could that note possibly say?

'_Dear Sarah, how's it going? I know you beat me three years ago but I just thought I'd drop you a line to see what you've been up to...'_ Sarah mused with a snicker. Her chuckle ceased almost as quickly as it began, her face twisting into a scowl as she sat up, her eyes moving of their own volition.

It sat there still, looking harmless. Without her brain prompting it to, Sarah's body slid from her bed and made its way back to her vanity, as if drawn to the object resting there like a magnet. She worked her bottom lip with her teeth fretfully as she stared down at the sphere, clear as crystal, though she couldn't see any of the surrounding objects as she peered through it from one direction or another.

Sarah knew that she was being reckless even just _thinking _about laying a finger on the thing, but that itch of curiosity had evolved into a full blown hunger that seemed to consume her; mind, body and soul. With a deep breath, readying herself for anything and everything, she reached forward, fingers spread...

The orb that had moments before been to heavy to move was easily plucked up by her outstretched hand. An electric shiver shot from her palm to her gut as her skin touched the smooth, glassy surface. It felt unlike anything she had ever touched before and she rolled it between her hands in fascination to further observe this quandary. It was as if her nerves were aware that she was holding something they never should have had access to: pure magic.

Unable to feign disinterest any longer (and uncertain as to why she had been trying in the first place), Sarah cupped the crystal in one palm and greedily snatched the now freed note. She opened the paper to find the most elegant and flawless script she had ever seen. Her keen eyes shot to the bottom of the paper instantly, though she was already positive which signature she would find there.

With her suspicions now confirmed, Sarah felt her legs turn to jelly beneath her. She absentmindedly sank into the chair facing her mirror slowly, trying to mend the apparent gap between her eyes and her brain, because no matter how hard she stared at the letters they refused to make sense to her. Closing her eyes, she took one deep (attempted) calming breath, trying to ignore the shiver that flew down her spine and limbs simultaneously. What could he possibly want with her? And after three years?

_Silly girl,_ she mentally chided herself. _Just calm down and read the damn thing._

With another large breath she focused on the note again, felt relieved as her brain finally started deciphering the message.

'_Lovely Sarah, _(At this point she felt her cheeks burn with a flush.)

_Firstly, Happy Birthday, my dear. It is with great displeasure that I send you solely this note, for the present I wish to bequeath to you must be given in person._

_I hope that you will take it at my word-if not on my honor as a gentleman, then on my honor as a king-that this is not some deception or trickery. Had I the power I'd have come to you a thousand times before now; as it is I must send my goblins out to do my bidding. They can not, however, pass along my gift-a gift that I am most anxious for you to receive._

_I can not come until you bid it of me, so if you would like to accept my present-no strings attached-just say your right words. You know the ones._

_Forever yours,_

_Jareth_

Sarah was trembling more violently after finishing the letter than she had been to begin with. What did that mean, that he would have come to her a thousand times before now? _'Forever yours' _? What was _that _supposed to mean? She shook her head and blinked. She was familiar with Jareth's presents, and she wasn't sure how enthusiastic she should feel about it. What would it be?

Her eyes scanned over the last word a few more times, her brain noting with a strange sense of satisfaction that he had signed solely his name. No 'his royal majesty', no reference to his station at all, there weren't even any emblems or insignia-it was just a blank piece of paper. She shivered once more, for reasons that were new and unknown. It was so..._personal_.

A tongue darted out to wet her dry lips as she studied the words. What trouble would come from calling him? None, _he_ insisted, though Sarah wasn't at all sure why the Goblin King would think that she had any reason to take him at his word.

'_Say your right words. You know the ones.'_

Sarah frowned as she contemplated this line. She knew the words for wishing away a child, but what were the words to call him to her? As soon as the question had formed in her mind Sarah realized that she already held the answer.

A nervousness bloomed in her stomach as she considered the notion. She couldn't...could she? She most certainly shouldn't. And she wouldn't...except her brain kept trying to figure out (and failing miserably) what kind of gift he could not have his goblin lackeys leave on her desk as they had the note.

"To Hell with it," she hissed, rising from her seat and standing tall, as if the action would solidify her courage. She tossed the note to the table before her, setting the crystal down with a _thunk_. "I wish the Goblin King would come see me right now," she rushed the words from her mouth, certain she would lose her nerve should she say them too slowly.

She eyed her balcony doors warily (the very same doors he had appeared at three years prior), half-expecting another thunderstorm, another snowy-white barn owl to come swooping in, _some_ kind of grand entrance befitting of her visitor's stature. So she was taken by complete surprise when his voice sounded softly behind her.

"Sarah."

Gasping, her body spun on the spot, finding him in a darkened corner that the light of her lamp didn't quite reach. She could feel her heartbeat in her throat, and clamped her mouth shut, fearful that if she attempted speech she would only succeed in throwing the organ up.

He was walking-no, striding-_no, stalking_ towards her, and she instinctively took a step back. She stared at him, a mixture of shock and terror strewn about her delicate features. Had she really just said that? Had she really just called him? Was he really standing in the center of her room, proud and dominating in all his tight-pantsed glory?

"Happy Birthday," he all but purred his best wishes, his lips twisting to form his customary smirk when all she could do was nod at him like an idiot. His dual-colored eyes held Sarah's in a captivating gaze; she could see amusement glinting in his mismatched orbs, and a surge of anger flared to life within her.

"Thank you," she received in the most curtly polite tone she could manage. "It's nice to see you again," her propriety spoke before her brain could even fathom what a great mistake those words would be. She clamped down on her tongue as punishment for the foul.

For her involuntary decorum, the Goblin King granted Sarah with a wider smirk and a raised eyebrow. "Is it?" his tone was surprised and expected, pleased and emotionless all at once.

Somehow, _his_ voice saying those two words sent a womanly thrill through Sarah, settling in her core; she immediately focused every last ounce of her willpower to suppress the feeling. She had absolutely no idea how she was supposed to further the conversation from there. She looked about aimlessly and glimpsed the crystal on the vanity beside her.

"I touched it," she informed him tonelessly.

His head tilted slightly in confusion, his eyebrow furthering its ascent across his forehead. "Oh?"

"What's going to happen?"

He outright frowned this time. "Sarah-" he followed her gaze to the orb that sat atop his note, gave a bark of laughter.

"Shh!" Sarah hissed, raising a finger to her mouth and taking an angry half-step forward. "Toby's sleeping!"

Jareth's features seemed to soften upon her step-brother's mention, but retained his mirth. "Nothing's going to happen. It's a crystal, nothing more."

"It's a trap," Sarah shot back warily, glaring at him in a way that dared him to object.

"It's a _paperweight_," he chuckled. "For the note," he nodded to slip of paper in question.

Sarah felt her cheeks flush in embarrassment. "Then-why could it only be removed by picking it up?" Ha! She had him there!

Jareth shrugged in the most elegant fashion Sarah had ever witnessed. "A simple spell to ensure that you are the only person to receive it."

Oh. Her cheeks grew warmer yet, and she felt an instinctively bashful need to hide her face from him. _Come on, Sarah, you aren't a child anymore,_she berated herself. Instead of ducking her face and letting her hair fall for cover, Sarah straightened her spine and pulled her shoulders back, raising her chin until she was staring him in the eyes.

Crap. Not the eyes. Now it was impossible for her to look away. "It's been three years," she stated, not entirely sure why this fact upset her.

"Mm, for you," he agreed, placing leather-clad gloves on his lean hips and taking a step towards her. He opened his mouth to continue, but was interrupted by Sarah's curiosity.

"How long has it been for you?"

For a moment he seemed slightly taken off-guard by her inquiry, then it was expertly masked with a veil of indifference. He gave another of those refined shrugs. "Somewhere between half of and one decade. The years bleed together," he waved this fact off with a dismissive hand.

"What is it that you want?" Sarah bit out, deciding suddenly that she did not like him there one bit.

"I had thought that was made clear," he drawled, his voice like honey-coated knives. He advanced several more steps, until he was looming over her, and produced a flat, square box from nowhere. "Your gift," he offered it, and Sarah could only look at the box, unwilling to accept it with her shaking hands.

"That wasn't necessary," she procrastinated as she wrung her hands behind her back in a panic. _Stop shaking, damn it! You're the trunk, not a leaf! Be a trunk. Whew. _She sucked in a deep breath and accepted the understated black velvet box with steady hands, refusing to let them falter as they removed the lid.

She gazed down at the silver pendant silently, examining the object. It seemed familiar... Her eyes darted to Jareth-or rather, to Jareth's _chest_, where a similar medallion rested against his lithe frame. Her gaze was then pulled up to his gorgeous face, falling first on that infuriating smirk, and then on his eyes, sparkling with satisfaction.

"Is this..." she began, trailing off as she unconsciously moved a bit closer to him and peered at the medallion, then compared it to the one she now held in her hands. It was the same shape, but the insignias were different; hers was a complex weave of straight lines. She didn't have to guess that it signified something about the Labyrinth.

"A medallion," Jareth finished, and she barely noticed when he retrieved it from the box delicately and moved to stand behind her. "with a _few_ purposes, actually," he added smoothly.

Sarah stiffened as she sensed his body, so close to her own, and nearly jumped when she felt his arms surrounding her for a brief moment. Then, coldness against her chest as the pendant made its home there. He had it fastened around her neck in an instant, but neglected to move from his position behind her.

"Such as?" she prompted, when it seemed he wasn't going to elaborate.

"You can visit the Goblin Kingdom whenever you wish," he informed her, and a jolt of excitement and elation shot through Sarah's being. "and it will grant you safe passage through my Labyrinth."

Her body twirled about, and she found herself chest to chest with the Goblin King. She looked up at him with a frown. "Why would you grant me such a liberty?"

He smiled down at her, unfazed by her reaction of suspicion and confusion. "You're the Champion of the Labyrinth. It is a privilege-an _honor-_ that is rightfully yours."

She thought on that for a moment, realized she was still in _very_ close proximity to him, and took a slight step back. She didn't notice that her fingers were stroking the raised insignia until she followed Jareth's smug gaze to her chest; she folded her arms across herself. "And the other purpose?"

"To ensure that you'll think of me from time to time," it could have been an innocent enough reason, except for the way the words rolled off of his sinister tongue.

_Try every moment,_ Sarah scoffed internally.

"It also ties you to my Kingdom, which means that I can come visit you Above," he added, as if that information were an after thought and not the entire reasoning behind the gift.

'No strings', huh? That little gem seemed like a sturdy cable to Sarah.

_**That **__makes slightly more sense_, Sarah thought bitterly, then expressed this sentiment vocally.

Jareth gave her a rueful grin. "Is that really such a wicked motive?"

Was it? He was tricky, but he had also never been anything but candid with her. If things were to backfire, wouldn't it have happened already? Sarah bit her plump, bottom lip, stared up at him in defeat. "I suppose not."

His grin metamorphosed into a pleased smile. "I have your permission, then?" he shifted forward, erasing the little distance Sarah had managed to put between them.

She snorted, despite herself. "Do you even need it?"

"No, but I would like it," he informed her softly.

She felt like her entire body was buzzing. One hand moved back up to finger the medallion that rested in the niche above her bosom. He had granted her the ability to enter _his_ lands at her discretion...wasn't it only polite to return the gesture? As she mulled this over, he changed the subject.

"How is he?"

"Hm?" she looked up at him, registering his words slowly and then realizing what he meant. "Oh, he's...he's gotten _so_ big," she gushed. "Fours years old already, I can't believe it. He's sharp too."

Jareth smiled at that. "Is he?"

"Oh yes," Sarah nodded enthusiastically. "_Very _quick learner."

"He starts school soon," he stated. Sarah probably should have felt concerned at his interest in her step-brother, but the only thing her brain could focus on was the fondness that had crept into the Goblin King's eyes.

"He's in pre-school now. Kindergarten next year. He's growing up so fast..." her heart twisted as she thought about going off to college in less than a year; she was going to miss so much. Sarah looked up at Jareth, suddenly finding the whole situation incredibly surreal. "Do...you want to see him?" she asked softly.

"That would be delightful," he responded with a dignified nod.

He followed her down the hall to Toby's room, and she put a finger to her lips as she slowly twisted the knob and eased the door open. They padded into the dark room softly and came to stand at the foot of the boy's bed, which was also a red, plastic sports car (Toby had refused to leave the furniture store until he had sold their folks on the concept).

The curtains were still drawn from that afternoon, allowing blue moonlight to flood the room; Sarah observed the man next to her from the corner of her eye. Jareth was smiling at her little brother, who was in a deep sleep on his stomach, his little limbs akimbo.

"Would he remember you?" Sarah whispered curiously, turning her head towards him.

His features darkened slightly, his smile twitching downward at the ends for the briefest of moments. "I don't know," he responded just as softly. "Perhaps. Should we find out?" he asked her impishly, a renewed grin on his face.

She almost snorted with laughter, stopped herself. "Not tonight," she answered instead. _Some other night_, her mind pitched in. "Jareth-" she began, halted immediately as a shiver flew down her spine. That was the first time she had ever spoken his name out loud. She could almost feel him shifting beside her; had that made him uncomfortable?

Sarah stared down at Toby as she coaxed more words to her lips. "You have my permission to visit me when you please," she glanced over to him as a triumphant smile crept over his lips. "But no sneaking up on me!" she insisted sternly. "And if I ask you to go, you have to leave."

"Fair enough," Jareth agreed with a smirk. "I thank you for your consent," he gave her a half-bow, and Sarah blushed.

"Well. Thank you for the gift," she was running out of things to say to him. Panic began to creep through her stomach.

"As I said, it allows you to travel to my Kingdom freely. However, should I feel it unsafe for you to traverse to the Underground, I hope you will honor my request to refrain from visiting periodically."

"Of course," Sarah agreed. She was considering asking him which types of situations would bar her from visiting, but as she opened her mouth he twitched and tilted his head slightly.

"I must depart," he almost sounded dejected, annoyed at this development.

"Is everything okay?"

"A child was just wished away. I must go confront the wisher. It was lovely to see you again, Sarah," he retrieved her hand swiftly and pressed his wonderfully soft lips to it briefly. "Do visit very soon."

"I will," she vowed, feeling another wave of giddiness sweep through her at the prospect. "How-"

"Just say your right words," Jareth explained. Sarah blinked a few times, alarmed to find that he was suddenly in the black armor he had worn when he first appeared to her. "while wearing your medallion."

"Thank you," she said again, as her fingers moved to trace said pendant. "This was the best gift I could have ever hoped to receive." Were those _tears_ welling up in her eyes? Darn it all. She turned her head away for a moment and blinked until the prickly feeling went away.

"I'm thrilled you are so pleased with it. Until next time," he bent into another bow before disappearing. The only evidence that any of that had actually occurred was the medallion around Sarah's neck and the faint trace of glitter that peppered the carpet where he had been standing.

"Happy birthday to me," Sarah mumbled dazedly, her hand still burning where the Goblin King had left a kiss. "Maybe eighteen _will_ be slightly different..." her pink lips pulled into a grin, and then a ridiculously large smile.

She left Toby to his slumber, retreating back to her room silently as she plotted how she would surprise Hoggle and the others with this new development.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

_**Alrighty so... this is a one shot, but I have already started two other drabbles that relate to this one. My question for you: would you prefer that I add them as separate one shots, or should I just add them as chapters to this one?**_

_**This is my first published Labyrinth piece, though I've got about eight others started right now (the stupid plot bunnies keep whispering ideas to me late at night that I must always start immediately). Please let me know what you think! Any feedback on characters would be amazing, since I'm horrified of writing people too OOC...especially his Royal Nibs (sorry, can't remember which author I swiped that from, but it makes me chuckle every time =P ) **_

_**Challenge: I've smuggled in a reference to one of my favorite movies in here (hint: NOT a children's film). It's probably pretty obscure so the first person to guess correctly in a review gets to provide any prompt they want for another one shot (either related or unrelated to this one). Happy hunting!**_

_**Thanks for reading! Until next time...**_


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